I've
been an audiophile for almost five decades, now; really since 1969. And it never
ceases to amaze me when I come across something that appears to work wonders in
an area where previously one had thought it to be perfectly addressed. I speak
about pure power from the wall outlet, and any filtration (or regeneration) to
clean it up as applied to one's audio and video system. On the surface, a piece
of gear should work well so long as it is plugged into a working outlet. But as
a 'phile, I know that this is just the beginning of my fascination. Within a
truly high-resolution playback system, everything introduced into or near an AV
system makes a difference in the performance quality; to some extent or another.

In the past, I have gone to such great lengths to
achieve the "perfect" power supply as using batteries to run the entire system;
various types from dry cell to liquid batteries, such as the ones found in
automotive and camping supply stores. I've also extensively used uninterruptible
power supplies (UPS), which feature rechargeable batteries to regenerate 50 or
60 Hz @ 60, 120, and 240 Volts pure sine wave alternating current power. The idea
is that any line noise that might occur as a result of component to component
interactions or from household appliances in use or even at one's neighbors home
can be eliminated if one generates one's own AC power, locally! Anybody ever
listen to their system after the electricity goes out but while your home is
still powered from its own propane generator?

Aside from these large and often noisy UPS (due
to the cooling fans used to thermally chill the battery recharging system) or
propane generator with a motor, batteries have been the best solution for me
when using existing components designed to run off AC wall power. When the power
is pure (and measurably so using an Audio Precision 3 system), I have observed
improvements across the audio and video performance board... even with the very
best built and regulated gear in the world; a system driven by a pure power
signal will provide superior sonic imaging, with far greater dynamics, tonal
shading, spatiality, tactility, vibrancy, immediacy, freedom from audible
distortions, and just plain outright believability. These terms and others are
often bandied about (presumably meaning anything one likes in a given context).
But in the end it is the sonic illusion which must be truly believable in a way
that often produces freez้  the little goosebumps produced on one's arm, neck,
back, and sometimes legs  then we are truly in an elevated state of emotional
awareness; something only really possible with stereophilia.

As a recording engineer, I have also discovered
that I can capture these different sonic variables to power supply quality
and compare them by recording the results! A/B testing of different types of
power supplies with the ability of hearing repeatedly how any change affects
different gear's capability of conveying emotion and holographic soundstaging
through music and sound is both demanding and revealing. And I meticulously use
remastering skills I learned while working at Chesky Records in the early
1990's, with procedures developed to transfer master tapes to digital for DSD as
transparently as possible. This has allowed me to record, measure, and
repeatedly compare whatever differences there are (if any) between two otherwise
identical states of gear under test, with me repeating the exercise until I have
verified or denied any impact from whatever the variation under test is or was
supposed to be.

Often, even the subtlest of variations can be located and
identified using a variety of practices and instrumentation (many now thankfully
available as APPs on our smart phones) including spectral analysis, frequency
response, total harmonic distortion, signal to noise ratio, phase accuracy,
cyclic variations over time, inter-channel crosstalk, dynamic range, and (most
importantly) listening  a skill that is sadly lacking in both engineers and
audiophiles, alike, these days!

These points are all the more interesting as we
make our way to my latest device under examination (test): HiFi-Tuning's Supreme
Harmonizer by Bernd Ahne, which is a component that seemingly shouldn't do
anything at all, yet it does! How it achieves this magic may remain a mystery,
because the interior of the product is shielded (see photos) from prying eyes
and reverse engineering. But it is a fact that is repeatable and recordable, and
perhaps a bit measurable to a very small yet significant degree.

HiFi Tuning Supreme Harmonizer's
SoundWhen the HiFi Tuning Harmonizer Supreme first arrived,
I was not prepared for how heavy it's 10" x 5" x 5" metal case
felt; like solid iron! It turns out this is because of the Italian marble that
lines the interior, presumably conferring some solidity upon the sound, although
I mean this both as a pun and a genuine observation. As you can see from the
photos, there is not much going on here; a box with an IEC outlet on the
backside and a red diode on the from in the middle of the HiFi Tuning logo  neat! Quite simply, this is unlike any other audio system enhancement I have run
into in the last 46 years of experimentation in this area. Check this out: by
plugging The Harmonizer into the same AC outlet as other gear you are listening
to (amp, pre-amp, CD, SACD, MAC or PC based digital music server, Pure Music BD,
LP, R2R, 8-Track (J) etc.), somehow it successfully seems to eliminate various
distortions and artificialities imposed on the reproduction chain that one may
have taken for granted. These include things such as glare, hash, hiss, grain,
opaqueness, emptiness of tone, flatness, limited soundstaging... e.g. sound only
from the speaker's locations, and even listener fatigue! Oh no, another long
list... But let me explain in a little more detail.

I recently saw an amazing offer by the 49 year
old American Magnepan Loudspeaker company: if a customer purchased but did not
like their latest 1.7i speakers (starting at around $2000), they could
return them for a complete refund, plus be reimbursed $100 for your
troubles! This struck me as a bold statement of confidence concerning the sound
quality most users could expect straight out of the box. So, I called Wendell
Diller, longtime marketing manager for the company, and asked him how many
people had accepted his offer, and then returned the speakers, to which he
replied: None!

Naturally, I requested a review loan. Well, these amazing 3-way
quasi-ribbon loudspeakers, which I will be reviewing here in a future issue of Enjoy the Music.com's Review
Magazine, are able to reveal extremely fine, nuanced, yet dynamic
sound in a manner that makes it easy to describe even small changes, such as the
ones I heard with the Harmonizer. And although I have many other loudspeakers
available for doing such comparisons, ranging in price and complexity from
affordable to obscene, it is because of the immediacy, speed, tactility, and
openness of the Magnepan speakers that I am able to write with a certainty of
opinion  which is this: plugging in the HiFi Harmonizer into the same outlet as
your system makes that system sound significantly more realistic and musical in
a way which goes beyond what it already was a pretty damn fantastic feat in
a well-designed and set-up system!

Let me describe what happened. I received the
Harmonizer in a pretty small but heavy box that also came with HiFi-Tuning's
latest Supreme Silver power cord  an accessory I will test in different
configurations (in a future review). There was no literature included; no
indication of the how's or why's. A call to the Bernd confirmed I should simply
plug in the unit into the same outlet as my system and listen. So, initially
when I plugged it in, which happened to be an outlet servicing only the digital
music server: both PC & MAC based recording and playback of up to 960kHz / 64-bit, any differences heard were next to none existent. I couldn't hear or
measure any change to the sound quality of my digital music system. But then, it
turns out these digital sources also include their own wallwart transformer,
isolating them from the incoming AC power, anyway. So in the second test
configuration, I plugged the Harmonizer directly into the same outlet as the
Digital Amplification Company's Golden Cherry Amplifiers (on review loan)
powering the Magnepan 1.7i speakers. And here the change in sound quality was a
quite noticeable improvement; not subtle but immediate. All those crazy words I
used above to describe various areas possible areas of improvement were clear
and obvious when playing a wide variety of my favorite music (including a lot of
film soundtracks) from digital sources.

A perennial favorite of mine is the early Chesky
Records jazz album, Clark Terry Pennies From Heaven [JD-2 1989];
for which I was lucky enough to be editor of the simultaneously recorded 15 IPS
quarter inch analog master tape (Dolby SR). I therefore have a great deal of
experience listening to this original master both in it's digital as well as
it's analog version. For those who would like to listen along at home, you may
purchase a copy at HDtracks.com in various formats including high
resolution PCM and DSD (the original 128-times oversampled CD is still
available, too). Hearing the first track with the same name as the album,
Clark is supposed image (sonically appear) just to the right of the right side
loudspeaker - but clearly in front of the plane defined by the two speakers.
While this is an easy to produce stereo illusion with most well set-up systems
that feature careful control of floor, sidewall, and ceiling reflections,
plugging the Harmonizer into the same outlet as the amps removed some of the
last doubts I may have had as to the ultimate transparency of this recording,
engineered by Bob Katz.

Apparent sonic distances proximate to myself and the
recorded ensemble of musicians were immediately stabilized and became precise in
a way that was clearly holographic and tactile when I closed my eyes! Instrumental
outlines now changed as the performance went on, turning as the musician's move,
and I became aware of subtle distinctions in Clark's embouchure (lip shape) as
well as the neat rhythmic fingering introduced by the bass player  Victor
Gaskin, during their respective solos. The sonic textures were now immediately
obvious and fleshed-out in comparison to not using the Harmonizer. I had been
just as surprised when I first began playing around with powering my whole audio
system from battery power in 1992. Properly configured and noise free AC mains
power can definitely improve the sound heard from any system; even one's that
have been specially purpose built to power a recording / production facility.

Making my way around my library, I selected some
neat production music by Keith Mansfield from the KPM Library  you may
remember it from Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse Double Feature as the some of
the interstitial materials between features. Here, I choose his signature 1979
album, Night Bird, on Vocalion Records.

This is some of the funkiest, hot disco studio album music
every committed to vinyl in an era before CD and even most digital recording. So
the engineers and also the musicians are at their height in England performing
with a truly soulful American beat. As a composer and arranger, Mansfield's
works are legendary and it is almost inconceivable that anyone watching movies
and TV for the last 50 years has not heard and loved at least one of his many
melodies.

This was an era from the late 1960's & 1970's that I simply adore
because the commitment to quality (even when it was stick, like Batman (1966 
'68) was evident in every frame of film and bar of music performed. Names like
Brian Bennett, Alan Hawkshaw, and Johnny Pearson defined countless jazz, rock,
pop, and disco variations on popular tunes of the time that have in many ways
surpassed the originals in notoriety without anyone actually realizing it!
Consult the catalogs of Amphonic Music, Bruton Music, Conroy, KPM Library, and
Vocalion Records to learn more. And the recorded sound of these tunes is just
outstanding, again revealing subtle improvements that in context are a
tremendously overdue area of noise and distortion suppression without
detrimental effect to the music.

This often C.HI.P.S-sounding music is sufficiently
complex and driving that it can demonstrate things like dynamics and impact
better than many other forms of music; especially when it's this well recorded
and produced. Have a listen! And don't be surprised to find yourself looking for
and listening to these wonderful compositions and arrangements which are at once
so familiar and also different.

A/B ComparisonsWhen listening to the same music with and without the
Harmonizer plugged into the system outlet is a lot like changing from regular
glasses to sun glasses with a polarizer while at the beach or on a boat. The
view is fine but once seen through the polarizer is hard to return to. You miss
the improvement in differentiation that the added spatiality and dimensional
information offer up about the instruments and musicians. It's a critical but
subtle level of improvement that requires both immediate A/B comparison and also
long term listening and substitution to appreciate fully. Here's an example:

1) A Classy Pair with Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie (1979)
 Pablo Records / LP & CD
It's a wonderful performance that has just enough simplicity
of instrumentation (at times) but also big band backing it up. And here we can
observe that without the
Harmonizer the sound is clear but flattish in soundstaging and dynamics. But with
the Harmonizer a dimensionality that was only hinted at is fleshed out along
with more palpable tactile delivery from both Basie's piano and Fitzgerald's
sultry vocals. You can suddenly hear the quality of the hammers in the piano
hitting the strings as well as individual qualities found in the embouchure used
to create the vocals. This is evident in both A/B quick and prolonged
substitution periods of listening.

2) Jacob Cats (1577-1660): Klagende Maeghdenenandereliederen 
Camerata Trajectina  Globe Records (2008) / CD
What delightful music making by this early baroque ensemble
recorded in a lively but very empty church featuring plenty of well-tuned
acoustic echoing of the instruments; particularly the recorder (track four). Without
the Harmonizer, the sound is clear and open with individual recorded soloists
sounding individually but carefully mic'ed. But the space sounds separate, as
though I am observing separate sound movies projected of each mike's capture
with one next to the other and having clear dividing lines. Vocals also have a
slight rasp to them that is also covered slightly without distinct depth. With
the Harmonizer, the sensation that all Mike views are blended together and
working to produce an unbroken soundstage where all the elements simply sound
more like real people playing in a real space rather than viewing a recording
made up of separate views. I find myself lost in the musical interplay much more
easily as the artifice of the recording process disappears.

3) Dave Valentine: Kalahari  GRP Crescendo (1982) / LP
& CD
I've owned this LP (and later the CD) after receiving it from
some friends of the family; there daughter giving away her LP collection.
Naturally, I'm always interested in new music and can never get enough. So it
was such amazing luck to come across this album by an artist who I had the
pleasure of working with at Chesky Records on Mombo Mongo JR-100. Dave is at the
height of his Studio album career and the amazing ensemble heard here. But here
is where things got interesting.

I liked the sound better without
the Harmonizer. And this began a furious back and forth set of comparisons to
figure out what was going on, here; particularly on track two Monkey Button. Now
this song has several percussion instruments including tapping on the rim of the
drum kit. Close-mic'ed and with little ambience mixed in on that on sound, I
came away hearing what it was more clearly with the Harmonizer. But I liked the sound better without
it. And I noticed something else: The bass was being noticeably affected by the
Harmonizer in a way that (with this album) seemed detrimental to the music. So I
decided to try a few more tunes.

4) Karen Briggs: Karen  Manley Labs - VTL Records (1993)
/ LP & CD
This one mike recording ( a VTL Records specialty) was
recorded in David Manley's unique studio. And the inherent qualities of both
space, frequency extension, and soundstage holographic presentation are all on
show in this live studio album. Without
the Harmonizer everything sounded open, wide, dynamic and big. With
the Harmonizer, everything took a jump back about a yard in the mix while
becoming deeper and less wide. And Karen's violin suddenly took up residence
separate from the space she and everyone were playing in. It was eerie to
suddenly hear what sounded like I was in the room rather than just listening to
the recording projecting out through the speakers. And the tonality of the bass
and the room ambience changed in a way that seems more harmonically meaningful
and tuneful. Again, without,
produced a fine sound. But the qualities of space and the feeling of real
instruments performing around and in front of me was diminished. The piano to
the rear left and behind Karen's violin just sounded more flat with less
physical separation between them. And with
it was clearly much more distinctly presented out in front of me and around me
 like when attending a live musical event that is sublimely produced.

ConclusionSo what have learned, here? Well, first, that small variations
in power supply purity can make a big difference in a high-end playback system,
Second, that components interact with each other through the sharing of ground
noise and interaction between loads on the same circuit to produce variations in
sound quality that can be tweaked. Third, short of using a generator to make
your own power, something accomplished by a high-end power filter (Stromtank,
APC, etc) or getting a fresh feed installed directly from your street power
expressly for your system (which I have done twice over  once for the analog
components and once again for the digital, separately), I highly advise on using
some kind of power filter for best performance. Fourth, and until you try it in
your system with your particular combination of gear and playback system
conditions, etc., it is difficult to say anything other than you will hear a
change if your system has good resolution and dynamics.

My firm professional opinion is that, under normal conditions
with a well set-up highly resolving system in a tuned room, you will
hear an improvement in how recordings are reproduced. But this improvement is
different from system to system and sometimes from one recording to another. But
in the end, the HiFi Harmonizer produces more improvement then it sacrifices.
Greater detail is evident, subtleties of texture stand out more from the
background, and imaging becomes more palpable and holographic. And I'm willing
to say that most people are going to hear this to some degree. But the most
important aspect, musicality, will be heard first and for most, as the
Harmonizer does what it says: it Harmonizes the different aspects on a system to
produce a greater whole than without it. And this is something that is worth
going to a demo to hear and appreciate for oneself. I look forward to reporting
back on my further experiences.

Tim De Paravicini And Jeremy Kipnis

Tonality

Subbass (10Hz  60Hz)

Midbass (80Hz  200Hz)

Midrange (200Hz  3,000Hz)

High Frequencies (3,000Hz On Up)

Attack

Decay

Inner Resolution

Soundscape Width Front

Soundscape Width Rear

Soundscape Depth Behind
Speakers

Soundscape Extension Into Room

Imaging

Fit And Finish

Self Noise

Value For The Money

SpecificationsType: High-end audio tweaks
Price of the Harmonizer 2499
Price of the Powercord 1599
Package price for both 3499